The present invention relates to a foldable portable telephone and, more particularly, to a foldable portable telephone whose operation is adequately controlled on the basis of the folded/unfolded position thereof.
There has been proposed a foldable portable telephone which allows, in a folded position, the user to operate a power switch thereof and see the ON/OFF state of the switch and the reception of a call, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication (Kokai) No. 4-11655 by way of example. There has also been proposed a telephone having a cover for protecting a switch section when folded, and a calculator module provided on the cover, as taught in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 4-117848.
However, none of the conventional portable telephones gives consideration to the control over transmission and reception to occur in the folded position. Specifically, howling is apt to occur when a microphone and a speaker built in the telephone are brought close to each other. Moreover, even when the telephone is folded, a display and other devices powered by a battery consume power, reducing the life of the battery.